Mini Y450 Review (Nvidia model)

I've been playing with my new Y450 for a few hours now so I wanted to give a quick hands on. No pics though sorry. First I'll go over the two things most people keep asking about. To reiterate I have the p7450 model with nvidia graphics.



1. YES it actually does have the GT110m card like the tech specs say. NOT the GT105m

2. YES the dvd drive is slot loading. Its misleading b/c its still a modular drive and not just part of the case, but it is definately slot loading.



I'm coming from using a t42p for 5 years so thats what I will be basing my opinion on.



Built Quality: Excellent for a consumer laptop. I don't go over my laptops with a fine tooth comb like some people, but from a general observation I see no apparent gaps or manufacturing defects. The whole case feels very solid and the matte black finish on top is a nice touch. The keyboard area is a gloss white which is probably not good for prints but I don't care about that. The biggest issue I have is with the hinge design. It uses two small plastic hinges barely an inch wide. I'm not a fan of plastic hinges since I've seen them break alot, but we'll see how long these last. For comparison the t42p uses metal hinges. For Build quality overall I'd give it a 8.5/10 with my t42p being a 9.5/10.



Screen Quality: LED backlit and looks great compared to my washed out t42p. Only complaint is the low resolution. 9.5/10 (t42p a 7/10)



Keyboard: Nothing can touch the older txx series laptops in keyboard quality but the y450 is still very good. There is a little bit of flex on the right side of the keyboard where you can see it go down. Not a huge deal to me. The key travel is a bit shorter than my t42p which I will have to get used to. 8.5/10 (t42p was a 10/10)



Heat: Gets a bit warm under the right palmrest but not bothersome. Bottom gets a little warm but nothing you can't stand on your lap. 8.5/10 (t42 was 9/10)



Mouse Pad: Great. Has little bumps built in for friction but barely noticable. Good accuracy and mouse speed. Haven't played much with the multi-touch or scroll.



Notes: C: Drive came as the biggist drive. D:smileyvery-happy:rive only contains lenovo drivers.



Graphics: Going to run 3dmark06 at some point testing lenovo vs nvidia drivers.



Speed: Runs fast after unistalling readycomm and trial stuff.



Will update as I spend more time. Feel free to ask questions.

 

How's the battery life on it?

 

Haven't used it on extensive battery time yet but when I did for 5 min just web surfing with wireless and LCD at half brightness it said 4 hours remaining.

 

Just scored a 2815 in 3dmark 06. I was going to try it again with the 185.85 nvidia drivers but during installation it only gave me the option to install the hd audio driver.

 

Good summary. I have similar views after using mine for one day. Readycomm was my biggest annoyance because it impeded connecting to my wireless network. Uninstalled and it works perfectly.

Slot load dvd and 110M were great bonuses on day one.

 

This convinces me to get one.

Where is the slot loading DVD? Front or side?

 

Why do you say it has a low resolutioin? isn't the resolutoin supposed to be 1366x768? Wouldn't that be a high resolution for a 14 inch screen?

 

Yes. That's average/low resolution on current notebooks, depending on your perspective. High resolution on a 14" would be WXGA+, 1440x900.

@OP: Thanks for the feedback!

 

Update: Now I see why everyone hates Vista so much. Its soooo buggy. Installing Vmware somehow disabled my wireless adapter which took me 30 min to figure out. The computer refused to come out of hibernation until I pulled the battery. But when it is running, its a great laptop. I may try the windows 7 RC if I find more issues with vista.

 

I would just use Windows 7. Vista is just terrible.

 

Sounds more like a driver issue than a Vista issue. Vista has run essentially without a hitch for me since I got my T500 in February (and prior to that, I haven't had any issues with it on my secondary desktop either). Service Pack 1 really ironed out all the problems with Vista.

 

I've been considering on purchasing this, and I appreciate the review! Quick question, does the Y450 have latches to secure the lid when closed while in transport? If not, I'm assuming it uses the hinge to keep it shut and wonders how that will perform in the long run.

 

you should test the battery life with the brightness down and power saving stuff enabled etc... I'd be interested to see how long it will last. thanks for the review

 

Well considering I put all same programs on this computer as I did with my t42p and I never had any problems with XP, then yes its vista's fault. I know all about vmware's virtual network adapters but never have I seen it disable a network adapter.

 

How can you choose the colour of the notebook when ordering online? I do not see the option.

 

Does the Y450 have a good graphics card/performace (Nvidia G1110M) overall and does it compare better or worse- graphics-wise then the Dell XPS studio 13 (Nvidia G9400M GS)?

Does the Y450 run games reasonably fast or even "best in class" fast given the 14" size?

I'm trying to strike the right balance; gaming vs school work.

 

Its not a gaming video card its a mainstream card. Its about on par with a a 9400M G clocked slightly faster and with HD decoding built in. As far as what games it will run, it really depends. Newest D10 on low settings probably and dx9 games at medium. The 9500M option on the studio 13 is a much better gaming option, unfortunately it makes that little studio 13 insanely hot (probably why they are offering a huge sale right now). You just can't shove high end stuff in a laptop under 15 inches and expect it to run correctly.

 

The Asus N81 is a better option for you if you want a portable gaming rig. of course it is more expensive than the Y450 but you will get a better GFX card.

Sources:
http://www.notebookcheck.com/Mobile-Grafikkarten-Benchmarkliste.735.0.html - Mobile GPU Benchmark
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16834220510 - high end configuration

 

Bummer, would the Y550's M130 card make an improvement?

 

The GT 130m on the Y550 is a huge improvement. I am able to play Crysis on high with no noticeable lag. If you do plan on playing many games thought, I would recommend you get a dedicated gaming laptop. Best Buy has some pretty decent Asus ones.

 

The N81 is a great laptop, but you should be hesitant about using it for school. The hardware in the system will drain the battery FAST.